Gennady Golovkin vs. Curtis Stevens fight preview

Tonight, HBO will showcase two heavy-hitting middleweights who can end a fight with a single punch; Gennady Golovkin (27-0, 24 KO's) versus Curtis Stevens (25-3, 18 KO's).

Gennady "GGG" Golovkin is known for his debilitating power and could be categorized as the modern day Mike Tyson, in terms of his pound-for-pound punching strength.

Elie Seckbach of ESNews recently told the story of a Golovkin sparring partner who turned down $6,000 dollars a month to spar Golovkin because he feared brain damage.

That same sparring partner stated receiving Golovkin's jab felt as though he was getting hit by rocks. Keep in mind, during sparring sessions boxers wear protective gear to lessen the impact of the blows and to protect them from injuries. Even with protective gear, the Kazakhstan native still manages to pack quite a punch.

Sparring partner David Imoesiri, a larger 175 lb + man who has sparred former WBA Heavyweight Champion Alexander Povetkin, stated Golovkin's punches were much more painful.

And how about recent opponent Gabriel Rosado who likened Golovkin's punches to that of a baseball bat?

Curtis Stevens possesses good power of his own and was once part of a Brooklyn group of boxers dubbed the "Chin Checkers," who were known for their punching power. At one time, Stevens and his group were a big deal in Brooklyn and even received promotional marketing from Chris Gotti and Damon Dash.

The New York rap scene became heavily enthused by the Chin Checkers and Fat Joe, Ashanti, Ja Rule, and Jay-Z were among the regular attendees to their bouts.

However, the attention began to fade once the Chin Checkers started to lose and their popularity soon evaporated.

Stevens had won thirteen consecutive matches before losing to Marcos Primera via an 8th round technical knockout in Summer 2006. His career ran into a bump soon after as he suffered two more defeats in his next ten matches.

Now was the time. It was the turning point in Stevens' career when he realized it was now or never.

He dedicated himself 100% to boxing and, in the process, gradually moved from light heavyweight to super middleweight, and finally to middleweight. He feels comfortable at middleweight and believes his light heavyweight power is still with him.

Stevens has won three out of his last four fights by 1st round knockout so it's safe to say he boasts solid knockout power.

In this fight between two explosive punchers, defense is the best remedy. And although an excellent power puncher, Golovkin is also an Olympic silver medalist who is technically superior and should be able to fend off potent offensives from a fighter like Stevens. Moreover, despite participating in nearly 400 amateur and 27 professional fights, Gennady has yet to hit the canvas so his defense is tight.

Look for Golovkin to repel Stevens' offensives and eventually break down his foe.